Halo of Light Around the Moon | Rilaya

13: Darkness

Lily walks into her bedroom after a long day of school, when she is instantly stopped in her tracks by what she sees. The toy moon's light, that has always worked perfectly since the day she was born, and that Ayla was so fascinated by, was flickering.

She sets her backpack down and figures that the toy's batteries are dying, so she runs back downstairs to find new ones.

"Mom, Dad, where do you guys keep-" Lily asks, before she sees the look on their faces. "What's going on?"

"We're on our way now," Farkle says, before hanging up his phone.

"We'll explain everything in the car," Smackle softly responds.

"Explain what? Where we going? What's going on?"

[Earlier that day, right after school got let out. Ayla is in the art room, waiting for Maya to finish grading some papers before they go home.]

"How long do you think you're going to take?" Ayla inquires, as she scribbles on a piece of paper.

"I don't know. Probably as long as I do every other day. Why?"

"My head hurts and I want to go home," Ayla complains.

"Go drink some water," Maya suggests. "I'll be done in a minute."

"Okay," Ayla agrees, as she gets up from her seat and goes out into the hallway.

Maya continues with her work, until she hears loud screams from outside.

"Maya! Maya, hurry! Please help!"

Maya jumps up from the desk and rushes out into the hall, where she finds Ayla lying helplessly on the floor.

"Ayla, what happened?"

"My head hurts really bad, and I'm really dizzy," Ayla explains, as tears fall down her face.

"Do you think you can make it back to the art room?" Maya questions, trying to stay as calm as she possibly can, but not doing a very good job.

"I-I-I..." Ayla stutters, as her eyes flutter shut and her body becomes limp.

"Ayla! Ayla wake up! Please," Maya begs, as tears form in her eyes and she gently shakes the lifeless girl.

Her hands trembling, she pulls out her phone.

"911. What's your emergency?"

"John Quincy Adams Middle School. An eleven year old girl, she-she just collapsed," Maya quickly cries into the phone.

"I'm sending help now."

"Please, hurry," she pleads.

[In the ambulance on the way to the hospital. Ayla slowly begins to regain consciousness.]

"M-Maya?"

"I'm right here," Maya smiles, as she squeezes Ayla's hand.

"Where are we?"

"We're in an ambulance, that's taking you to a hospital," Maya answers.

"I don't feel very good," Ayla utters.

"I know," Maya says, pursing her lips to stay strong, "but you're going to fight through this, okay?"

"Maya?"

"Yes?"

"I love you. Can you tell Riley that I love her too?"

"Riley is going to meet us at the hospital. You can tell her yourself then," Maya replies, as she wipes the water out of her eyes.

"You guys were the best parents I could have ever imagined. I need you both to know that I love you," Ayla finishes, just as she drifts away again.

[Later at the hospital.]

"Where is she? I need to see her!" Lily frantically yells, upon finding Riley and Maya anxiously waiting in the lobby.

"Lily... Lily, calm down" Riley repeats, as she holds onto the girl's hand to soothe her. "You need to relax."

"I need to see Ayla," Lily retorts, her eyes swollen and stained red from the car ride to the hospital.

"She is in surgery right now," Riley states.

"Is she going to be okay?" Lily asks, as she tries to steady her breaths and relax.

"Right now all we can do is hope so," Riley says, biting her lip, as she tries to hold back her tears.

Farkle and Smackle sit down next to Riley and Maya.

"Do they know what's wrong?" Farkle asks.

"She had a brain aneurysm that ruptured. They think that her stupid fuc- they think it was caused by her father beating her," Maya spats.

[Quite a bit later, a nurses comes out into the lobby to update everyone on Ayla's status.]

"I just wanted to inform you all that Ayla is still in surgery and at best she won't be able to have visitors until the morning. I always advise that the friends and family of my patients' get, as much sleep as possible."

"You-you want us to go home?" Maya utters.

"It's your decision, but that's what I would recommend," the nurse replies.

"And when we come back tomorrow she will be okay?" Lily asks.

The nurse looks at Lily for a few seconds, trying her best to smile. "We are going to do everything we can for her."

"But is she going to be okay?" Lily demands to know.

The nurse turns towards Riley and Maya. "May I talk to you two alone."

[Later at the Minkus household.]

"Why couldn't I have stayed? Riley and Maya stayed! Why did I have to come home?" Lily's voice echoes across the house.

"Lily, we'll go to the hospital as soon as we can tomorrow, but you need to get some sleep right now," Farkle reasons.

"But-" Lily retorts.

"Sweetie, please listen to your father," Smackle says.

Being too tired to fight any longer, Lily gives in and goes to her room.

For hours Lily sat in bed and continued to watch the light of the moon flicker on and off. Until finally it stopped, and the room instantly filled with darkness.

"We did everything we could."

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A/N: Next Chapter: Brandon. 15 Years Later.